Lots of squalls today.
Captains briefings back in Mindelo said to expect more as we approached Grenada.
One pair of squalls was particularly memorable.
Winds picked up and then kept building and building. This was then followed by a huge torrential downpour. TUI got a thorough car wash!
It was getting pretty tough to steer as winds were high and we had dark squalls either side of us. Focus Peter, focus. The sweet spot was a broad reach. If we were on a beam reach and a big wave kicked TUIs butt around we could broach and be over sideways in the water. If we were on a deep broad reach (almost direct down wind) and had a wind shift then a crash gybe could happen and the boom swings over with squall force and crashes over to the other side. It could snap the boom and in some circumstances take out the rigging and dismast the boat. That was not going to happen today. TUI was in her groove and stretching her legs and I was the jockey trying to guide her. Focus. Everything was stable. Everything looked good. Hell, we were approaching 12 kts in a 46 ft sailboat that had a displacement hull speed of 9kts. We were hauling. Life was good. Until, … I looked right. Holey Shit! No Bueno. The squall to our right had developed a water spout about 2 to 3 nm (nautical miles) away. A water spout is like a tornado/twister at sea. Google it. Only option is to gradually bear away from it without flipping the boat. Slowly changed course a little for a few minutes then looked back. Weird. It had changed shape. No longer a stove pipe it looked now up and down and thicker. Huh? How could it change shape so quickly?
It was a second one! Swiveled my head some more. Christ! You gotta be f-ing kidding me. Three water spouts in a line tracking parallel to me 2.5 nm away. Glorious sight in any other conditions. Dangerous this close. Focus! Keep distance and let them play themselves out. Let TUI run, don’t flip the boat, and… just be patient and wait.
I waited and waited keeping TUIs nose out of trouble and playing each big wave and each big wind shift. Be patient Peter I thought. Just be patient.
Slowly the air temperature of the wind at my back became warmer. I began to smile. I knew what would come next. Wind speed started to drop. 28, 26, 25, 23 and settled just under 20 Knots. I looked right and the water spouts were thinning out as the squall passed us by, a dark mass destined for somewhere else ahead.
What an experience. Was it good or bad? Good I think. Nothing got broken and nobody got injured.
Another day on the Atlantic.
Another day closer to our destination!.
